Star Raiders and the Lost Expidition (28 page)

“
Where are-,” she started then realized where she was. She then looked at Mike confusingly, “What’s going on? Are we dead?”

“
I don’t think so,” Mike replied puzzled. He took her hand, helped her up, and then they made their way to the cockpit. He wondered who was sitting in the pilot seat, but before he could ask, he heard CRAIG’s voice on the intercom.

“
It is good that you got them, but as I suggested to Xman we must evacuate from this system.”

“
Why?” the man in the pilot seat replied, and from that one word Mike immediately knew who it was.

CRAIG went on, “My calculations tell me that the newly acquired star that was once Uno’s planet will go into supernova within minutes.”

Justin finally awoke and could not believe what he saw as well, “Mike, where the hell are we?”

The pilot seat swiveled and Justin and Mike saw a familiar face. It was Digan. He smiled at them as Mike had more questions than answers. Before Mike could say the first question, the internal alarms went off. Digan looked back to the screen as Mike and the other sat down to see what made the alarms go off. It seemed that the Xatu Empire was not done battling. Justin, still dazed, his first reactions was pressing a button as a chair dropped from the ceiling. He sat in the proton gun chair and fire upon several Xatu B’tars ships.

Cleaver
, Tygla thought.

She then finally figured out what that was. Mike sat in the copilot seat as he pushed a few buttons. Tygla sat behind Mike wondering what she can to do help. Digan maneuvered the
Condor
as far away from the new star as it started to grow bigger by the second.

The new star blinded Hiss’ look. He cringed as he ordered to have the window ports adjusted to the intense light that shined through. The alarms rang though the entire ship. The temperature kept rising every second and Hiss could not wait any longer for Drax. He knew that the planet would explode, as one of the Xatu science officers told him that the star would.

“
Raisss Ssshieldsss and get usss out of here!”

“
But what about Lord Drax?” the Xatu Lieutenant wondered.

“
He will be missssed,” Hiss replied, “Inform all B’tarsss to report back immediately.”

“
Sir, the rescue shuttle has returned,” an officer reported.

“
I don’t care,” hiss replied franticly, “Full power now! Sssss.”

Justin saw on the digital screen of the gun chair, that the group of B’tars fled back to the command ship. He also witness that the star kept growing at a geometric rate. He was not an expert in astronomy, but he knew if they do not get out of the system, they would be vaporized to nothingness. The
Golden Condor’s
hull was getting hotter every minute and its passengers were getting nervous, but Mike assured them that the ship’s internal thermal cooling system would stabilize the temperature the best it can without overheating the computer’s circuitry. The Condor joined Xman’s Thunder Claw and both of them raced for edge of the system, but at the same time, in an instant flash. The star went into super nova. It exploded violently leaving a ring of radiation expanding at an underestimated length. The explosion caught both ships were in the supernova and were hurled deeper into space. Once it was a planet that was in the middle of the galaxy, that held the secrets of the universe, is now gone.

Chapter 16

The Assault on Hades

Digan and Mike tried to control the ship until its movement died down. They did not know where they were now until Mike noticed that the
Hades
was on their scanner. The computer’s gyro system was off the scale and he could not get the Nav computer to work. He looked at his ship and could not believe it. He had thought that he would go search the entire galaxy to find it again. He was still confused as to what has happened. Mike still wanted to know how Digan found the
Condor
and brought it back to them.

“
I just want to know how?” Mike asked him. “Justin said it was stolen.”

Digan chuckled a bit and replied, “Well, he wasn’t too far off. Ya see after my weekend leave. I headed to Sadr for some R&R, when I just happen to see your ship in one of the docking bays. I didn’t strike odd to me, except I saw a black Tabby Felinis go in. I followed him, inquired where you guys were. He said he never heard of you. That is when I got suspicious, and clubbed him on the back of his head with the butt of my gun while he wasn’t looking. I dragged him out and called the cops.”

Mike was impressed, but he had one more question, “So, how did you find us?”

“
Are you kidding?” Digan said as he pointed to Justin’s wristband, “You got long range homing beacon on that thing.” Justin nodded knowing he was right. “It led me straight to ya.” He looked to Tygla and said, “So you must be Princess Tygla? Justin was right you are, ‘Hot’ as he put it.”

“
He did?” As she look to him skeptically.

“
A little hot.” Justin replied as they chuckled.

“
So how did the thief get in the ship?” Mike asked.

Digan answered, “He had an illegal universal remote control key. Must have built it himself.”

Justin then said, “I told you!”

The radio boomed as Xman’s voice filled the cockpit, “Digan, how are they?”

“
They’re fine, including your sister.”

“
Tygla?” Xman wondered. “I thought I told you stay on that space port Tygla.”

“
You said should, brother,” Tygla argued playfully, “But don’t worry my knights protected me.” She smiled to Mike and Justin.

“
Mike if she is-,” Xman warned, but was interrupted by Mike.

“
She’s fine.”

Then another voice boomed in, “This is Commander Sommenar Haras of the
Rebirth
, is everyone Ok?” The crews acknowledged that they were well, “Good, get on board. We need you in our tactics meeting. It seems that the
Hades
survived the super nova as well.”

As the
Golden Condor
flew in the directions of
Rebirth
Tygla was still dazed on what happened. Justin told her that she became a god that floated above that altar. She did not believe him until Mike concurred it was true.

“
So I was god?” She wondered.

Mike looked to her, “Well, I think you were, are a goddess to me.”

She smiled and blushed, “I’m serious now.”

“
You don’t really remember do you?” Mike asked her.

She shook her head and replied, “No, that last thing I remembered was Drax cutting my hand and-,” She looked down for the first time and was astonished. She saw that there was no cut, bleeding, nor a scar on her palm. “It’s gone. I was sure there’d be some sort of a scar there.”

Mike took her hand to examine it. She was right there was no scar. They looked at each other confused, then Mike said, “I suppose when The Creator entered your body, it heal your wounds.”

She nodded, “You could be right. There are some things cannot be explained.”

Hiss finally sat in the command chair that was once belonged to Drax. He waited a long time for this chance. He still mourned for his former lord. For a long as he knew him, nothing nor no one had ever killed Drax. He remember one time on a raid in the Draco System, Drax was shot five times but he still fought and lived.

“
What are you doing in my chair?” A voice boomed for the other side of the room. Hiss jumped wondering who was questioning him. He swiveled around and saw a ghost. It was Drax, standing in front of the doorway in tattered clothes. “I will not ask again Hiss.”

Hiss was so scared, as he had just seen a ghost. He was confused as he replied shockingly, “Ssss-ssssir! Y-you’re alive!”

Drax walked up to Hiss as if to attack or punish him, but his just said coldly, “No thanks to you.”

Hiss got out as fast as he could as Drax approached him. Hiss knew that Drax was in the worst of moods and he did not want to be in the same room.

“
My lord, we thought that you were dead,” Hiss retorted.

Hiss could see Drax’s darkened eyes as he replied, “So is that why you left me for?”

“
N-no that isss not true my lord,” Hiss answered cowardly as Drax immediately went for his throat as to strangle him to death. He morphed his hand to a metal substance. Hiss was then lifted in the air, “I-I tried to get…a…resscue ssship…to you…The exsssplotion propelled the sssship away…It isssn’t my fault.”

“
Isn’t it? You failed me for the last time Hiss. I should kill you now.” He squeezed harder.

“
Pleessse. Ack, blame the felinisssss,” he pleaded.

A small grin appeared in Drax’s lips as he had a devious thought. It was the Felinis’ fault. He then let his companion down as Hiss massaged his throat with his artificial hands. Drax relieved Hiss of his duties as he sat down in his chair. Drax continued to contemplate to his thoughts as Hiss left the room. He called Captain Tah for damage report. Tah told him for some strange reason the damage was minimal and the ship’s power level was off the scale. This puzzled Drax. Drax swiveled his chair to face the window of stars trying to relocate the planet that he was once on. He wondered why it exploded the way it did. Did The Creator really release the ultimate power and transfer it to their ship? Ultimate power, he thought as he grinned widely.

“
Sir,” the com boomed as Captain Tah, now back in command reported, “The Felinoron battleship the Rebirth has entered on our scopes.”

“
Really?” Drax smiled knowing he can finally finish what he had started now that he has the ultimate power. Nothing can stop him. “Alert all commands. Prepare to engage the enemy.”

“
Yes sir.”

Now, to test the power they have, Drax thought.

They all gathered in the ship’s briefing room ready to plan on how to destroy the deadly
Hades
. The Felinis scanner had informed them that the
Hades
was just in their RADAR and approaching fast. King Rymu, Sommanar, and Xman had informed Mike and his crew that CRAIG knew how to destroy the
Hades
, but they needed their help in doing so.

“
Yes, as I said before,” CRAIG started, “There are a couple of ways to destroy it, from the inside. Option one is you can disrupt the flux drive engines with an electric spark which will immediately destroy the ship.”

Mike did not like that option and asked, “And the other way?”

“
The Xatu are very cautious of their ships getting into the wrong hands so they added one last defense, a self destruction program that will overload the ship’s power and destroy it completely. There is however a problem, deep inside the ship the lies a secret room where the computer that controls the program rests. The room is heavily guarded and surveillance twenty-four hours, if you do enter that room, and defeated the guards, you then must provide three things. A pass code that only the captain or commander of the ship have, his handprint and a security card from one of the guards.”

“
And how are we suppose to get all that stuff,” Justin asked.

The King looked at Justin and replied, “That is what you must figure that out once you are inside. Since you three were going in to that ship in the first place, it will be your job to find that computer room, the pass code, hand print and the security cards.”

“
And how are we supposed get in?” Justin inquired again. “They don’t actually leave the back door open for us.”

Mike looked to him, “Justin, remember what we tried to do before?” Justin nodded “All we got to do is open the back door for them.”

“
But they only open that chute when they go into Hyper Flight, not into battle,” Justin pointed out.

“
That is not entirely true,” CRAIG said, “Most of the refuse chutes are not made of Xrylium and can be cut by high powered pulsar beam.”

“
Like our proton cannon,” Mike thought.